A day in the life

With all of the reality shows polluting television stations everywhere
these days, shows like this are what keep me from turning off my TV
permanently.

Rookie blue is exactly what you think it is: a cop show. It's got
action, drama, and even has it's comedic moments. It has a variety of
characters, the main ones being the five rookies, and chronicles the
goings-on in and around the team.

The main characters are Andy, the good cop who rarely lets anyone in,
Epstein, the smart dork from a broken family (that he never really
talks about), Peck, the mean girl whose mother was a well-known and
well-respected cop on the force, Diaz, the good Catholic boy who seems
to want to break free of that image, and Nash, the single mother who's
been trying to balance work and motherhood without anyone's help.
They're all, at times, naive and still have so much to learn but isn't
that what being a rookie is all about? You're trained according to what
might happen but that almost never completely prepares you for the real
world.

I think the problem many viewers have with this show is that it's been
done before but, like I said , this is a cop show and that's what it's
promised to be. If you know you don't like the genre, that's fine, but
it isn't the show's fault. I'm venting a bit, but it's just frustrating
when the advice being given is to not give the show a chance because
there have been similar shows before. If you're looking for something
completely different from anything you've ever seen before, you'll be
looking for quite some time so, in the meantime, give this show a
chance. It has real characters: ones everyone can relate to in some way
or another, and the stories continue to unravel every week. Each
episode has stories of their own, but there are also overarching story
lines that regular viewers can become attached to.

It recently got renewed for a second season (Congratulations!), so
it'll be around for a while. It really is a good show. The kind that I,
personally, have been wanting to see but didn't expect in the summer
(how often do good summer shows come on?). So, if you can, check it
out. The episodes also get posted on Global TV and ABC's sites, so if
you can't see it when it airs, it'll also be there. Hope you all enjoy
it as much as I do!

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46 out of 65 people found the following review useful:

potential galore

I want to take a moment to defend this show, and I will defend it
mightily. Yes, there are some unresolved issues that the creators would
benefit from paying some attention to. Yes, the show can be much better
than it is. Yet, that in itself is kind of inspiring, and certainly
enough to keep this show around for more than one season. I would be
willing to see a LOT more of it, in fact. It has so much opportunity to
address so many issues with its fantastic premise. If it bobbles every
once in a while like with the third, so what? It's only four episodes
in. Every show's team makes mistakes sometimes. The point is whether or
not they learn from their mistakes. The episode that came on after the
third was infinitely better than the previous one. The lead characters
seem to be having a BALL, always an important aspect of what makes a
show watchable. There are a myriad of possibilities left to explore.
The lead actors and actresses are excellent and perfectly cast, Mr. Sam
whatchamacallit is an excellent handsome lead I promised myself I would
not fawn, and Andie is a very compelling character in herself. I would
prefer a voice over from her so that her behavior made more sense why
be so mean to Sam because of rules that are not under his control? Why
can't she just TALK to him about it? Is she actually not interested?. I
would also prefer that she be a bit more approachable, and please God,
better at her job. Right now she SEEMS every bit the bumbling intern,
and is clearly not doing as well as everyone else. Yet that gives her
the opportunity to redeem herself. Many shows begin with a much less
interesting premise and get less interesting as they go along. This
show is better than at least half the shows on television, including
those that have somehow like a certain criminal investigation show,
anyone? persisted for a good three years longer than they should have
with critics' inexplicable approval. This show is fun, it is real, it
is a look at a world we have only seen from the rosy point of view of
the very best. We have never seen the criminal justice system deeply
challenged from the inside, which Andie seems poised to do. We have
never seen the rules of engagement actively challenged, which Sam seems
poised to do. We have never had any writers tackle the very real
problem of special treatment in selecting new candidates for the force
and offering promotions. We have never seen people of different races
work together and address misunderstandings, like Andie's best friend
and her paramour. This is very good television, AND it is very
female-friendly television. Men, shut up. This show is not for you.
This time, it is not ABOUT you!

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25 out of 25 people found the following review useful:

it'll grow on you if you let it

New cop dramas come out every year or two and most are hit or miss, but
there is something to this show that leaves me hoping it gets picked up
again for another season. The show follows a group of fresh rookies
trying to find their way on the force through mistakes and errors in
judgement. It's filmed and set in Toronto, with its share of Canadian
actors so that hit home with me. I read a review of this show that was
very harsh and was disappointed that the show wasn't accurate in terms
of what actual police work is like for rookies in terms of the amount
of freedom they have in this show and the ability to make decisions. TV
is meant for entertainment so I'm glad they don't have it accurate to a
tee. But the emotions, fears, camaraderie, and pain these characters go
through while trying to find their bearings in a new career are very
real I think and contributes to the strength of the show.

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25 out of 28 people found the following review useful:

Hope it's renewed

I've watched every episode. I judge a movie or TV show by how much I
care about what happens to the character. Andy has grown in so many
ways as a cop since the series began. Of course, this is the writing.
Unlike so much crap on TV today, the writing and character development
has been excellent. These guys really have matured from rookies to (at
least) sophomores. What's great is that they haven't been written as
knowing it all -- yet. But, am I the only one who sees -- and feels --
that the entire 15th has become a big family, all having each others'
backs? I care about these people, and I hope ABC sees fit to renew it
to fill in for the soon-to-be-history fall show that fails first.

Pleasant Enough

OK the main reason I even gave this show a go was the 2 women from the
ad, Missy Peregrym and Charlotte Sullivan. With that admission, the
show was actually still watchable.

All of the characters are at least tolerable, there is not too much
angst and relationship drama, there is action and most of the plots
were at least enough to hold the viewers interest. Sure some of the
situations portrayed were over the top, with the mistakes the rookies
made, but it also gave the characters a chance to learn from them and
progress. As for the people who complained about such minor issues as
belts etc, well who cares tbh! I for one never noticed them, and
couldn't care less.

The show is basically a good way to spend an hour, it won't change your
life, but on the other hand you won't think it was a total waste. The
show is not a serious gritty ultra realistic drama, it's light
entertainment, and that's what it does. As Swarek says: "It is what it
is".

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24 out of 33 people found the following review useful:

It's Great Entertainment

Come on, people. It's entertainment, it's a story, it's neither a
police procedural manual nor a 'reality' show (as if those are 'real').
I know firsthand that the courtroom drama shows are also very
unrealistic, but most trials actually get very boring, and who wants to
watch that? For those who are carping about the acting, I wonder which
shows you usually watch. With a heck of lot of training and performing
under my belt, I'm very impatient with poor acting, but I find these
characters very engaging, which is a good sign that the acting chops
are there. My suggestion: Either don't watch it, or relax and enjoy it
for what it is. I, for one, hope it stays on the air.

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21 out of 28 people found the following review useful:

It won't be for everyone, but it's entertaining!

Frankly, I agree with some of the reviewers from the US. After all, I'm
a superhero and I have yet to see a show or movie that I felt properly
demonstrated what the life of a superhero is like, I mean a 3 year old
evil genius could invent better gadgets than what the movies or shows
give Batman. ;) Seriously though, I've never seen any promotional
material stating that this show was supposed to be real...but it is
really entertaining. Yes, there are moments when I'm yelling at the
screen because one of the "rookies" completely disregarded all common
sense, never mind their training. Truthfully though, these characters
are all young (well, compared to me) and I'm perfectly willing to admit
that I didn't always show the most common sense when I was that age, so
these blunders don't bother me. I'm not expecting a perfect recreation
of life on the force, I'm just expecting some entertaining stories that
are well delivered and that's what I'm getting.

As for my fellow Canadians, the best praise I can give this show, is
that I didn't realize it WAS Canadian until some Canadian cities were
mentioned in the show. Let's face it, our comedies are generally very
good, but our dramas have some times been rather lacking. This one
isn't.

This was a little gem I found in the beginning of summer. Despite being
aired on Showcase, Global and ABC, I didn't really hear too much about
this show until the first season was done. With the series being filmed
and set in Toronto, I was surprised it took me so long to watch it.
This show might be old news to a lot of people but personally, I only
know a handful of people who have seen this. So let me give a brief
synopsis before getting into the review.

On the surface, Rookie Blue looks nothing more than a typical police
drama with hardly any big name actors (No offence to Missy Peregrym and
Gregory Smith) but it is so much more than that. Perhaps it holds a
special place in my heart because of its Toronto and Canadian
connections. The best way to describe this show is Grey's Anatomy with
cops instead of surgeons. Replace the interns with rookies and Seattle
Grace with 15 Division and you got yourself, Rookie Blue. The story is
focused on 5 rookies (All Canadian actors btw) that just graduated from
the academy, and follows their young careers as they experience the
hardships of being a police officer both, on and off duty. Each rookie
is assigned with a training officer and its a treat to watch the
different dynamics of each pair, as well as the dynamics among the
rookies as a group - learning together yet competing with one another
to gain attention from the top dogs.

The main star of the show is rookie Andy McNally portrayed by the
Montreal beauty, Missy Peregrym (Stick It), she's a cop that has a lot
to prove because she carries the baggage of her father, a worn out,
burnt out homicide detective. Other rookies include, over achiever, Dov
Epstein (Gregory Smith, Everwood), nice-by-the-book-guy, Chris Diaz
(Travis Mine), tough girl with an attitude, Gail Peck (Charlotte
Sullivan), and the responsible single mother, Traci Nash (Enuka Okuma).
Some of the veteran cops include, McNally's training officer, Sam
Swarek (Ben Bass) - who's the direct opposite of her, goes by instinct
and tends to break the rules to get the job done, homicide detective,
Luke Callaghan (Eric Johnson) and Nash's training officer, Noelle
Wlliams (Melanie Nicholls-King). With such a big ensemble cast of
interesting characters, I need to cut myself short, or I'd be typing
forever.

Please continue reading the full review at: http://goo.gl/3VH68

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15 out of 21 people found the following review useful:

Rookie Light Blue

I tend to disagree with everyone saying this show is bad, there seems
to be a lack of knowledge from the rookies but thats part of the
appeal. I think the writers were really trying to humanize the
characters and show that cops don't just pop up being all bad ass and
knowing all the stuff they know. This is really more of a training camp
for cops from the very start, clearly they know the very basic but the
instincts it takes to solid interrogation or street smarts while on the
job are just not there so I'm gonna chalk that up to realism of the
first few weeks of being on the job.

The second part that comes to mind is the cast, OK there's a massive
fluctuation in dynamics here they need to really break down a few
characters instead of just doing a scatter shot and hoping you like 1
main and 1 of the 50 other people they toss at you, I mean diversity is
one thing but having so many people clumped up into 1 show is just a
complete loss on the focus of the show, it makes everything seem
incomplete because of constantly breaking away from one pair and moving
on to the next.

Final review 7/10 too much stuff going on at once, simplify a bit and
you'll have a solid show.

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8 out of 8 people found the following review useful:

Rookie Blue - A 'fresh' insight into police life

After watching season 1, all I can I say is that I enjoyed the show a
lot. It's fun and interesting without being shallow. The focus is on
the characters themselves and the personal relationships between them
rather than on the events taking place. This probably makes it
refreshing and exciting compared to the multitude of impersonal police
and investigation drama series where viewers are only presented with
the events as such and are not allowed enough access into the personal
dimension of the characters. Each character is unique in their own way
although they do share a common trait: humor, whether it is voluntary
or not. It seems to be in their nature to treat the 'drama' in the show
and in their lives with the necessary, required amount of irony and
sarcasm, a fact which makes them funny and pleasant. As policemen, they
do their job well, but at the end of the day they prove they are still
human by going out for a drink with their friends, thinking about and
analyzing the events they have just been a part of and drawing certain
conclusions about themselves and life in general. Most of the times
they don't allow themselves to take complex situations or difficulties
too seriously although they are aware of them and the consequences
these have on their lives. The characters are all 'fighters' and no
matter the hardships they are faced with, they don't give into them and
are prepared to start again the next day. The overall tone of the show
is light-hearted but it is welcomed considering the police drama series
genre. There is chemistry between the major characters and
compatibility between all the characters. I do have to confess that,
although at the beginning of the show I thought Andy and Luke would
form a better couple than Andy and Sam, my opinion has changed since
then. For me it is obvious, at the end of season 1, that Andy and Sam
would form a better couple because they share a deeper level of
understanding and communication. Sam is closer to Andy than Luke is and
the first relates to her better than the last. I think that Andy simply
needs more time to understand both of them and accept that Sam is the
better option. Maybe as a viewer I would need to know more about Luke's
character and to see more of his personal side and history to be able
to still support his relationship with Andy. At the same time maybe we,
as viewers, aren't really supposed to get a better look at Luke's
character precisely because there is nothing more of interest other
than the passion for his job. Either way, the fun of it all is also
added by the fact that the five major characters are all rookies not
only in their profession but also in their personal lives. They don't
only need to 'discover' themselves but also those around them. It's
going to be interesting to watch the transformations they undergo and
the way they 'grow'. I'm anxiously waiting for season 2 to start -
whenever that may be ,though I hope it is sooner than later-, and I
hope the show not only 'lives up' to season 1 but also surpasses it and
my expectations.